line in the mirror

Long ago there was a deep forest called Elden Forest.
At the edge of the forest lived a girl who wore a red hood.
Her name was Mia.
She was about fourteen years old and lived quietly with her grandmother Rosa.

Near Elden Forest there was a village of hunters.
In the village an old story was told again and again.
It was the story of a girl named Iris who was eaten by a wolf and of a wolf that was killed by hunters.
The children of the village grew up hearing this story.
They were taught that wolves were frightening and dangerous creatures.

Mia also wore a red hood, but she did not live like the other villagers.
She kept her distance from the village.
The one she trusted most was a single wolf.
The wolf was named Forest.
Forest had been with Mia since she was very small.
He was not a monster to her.
He was her friend.

One day three children from the hunter village came to the spring to fetch water.
Their names were Mary Lily and Peter.
At the spring they saw something they could not believe.
A girl in a red hood was standing beside a wolf.

The three children froze in fear.
But the girl smiled calmly.
The wolf stood quietly and wagged his tail.

Mia spoke gently.
She said it was all right and that Forest would not bite.
She said he was her precious friend.

Lily slowly stepped closer.
She reached out and touched Forest.
His fur was warm and soft.
Mary and Peter followed.
The children began to realize that what they had been taught and what they were seeing were not the same.

From that day on the children sometimes visited the house at the edge of the forest.
They kept the secret.
In Rosa's house there was a large old mirror.
Mia often sat in front of it and looked at her own face.

The face in the mirror always looked a little uneasy.
Mia was afraid.
She feared that one day the hunters would find Forest.
That fear never left her heart.

Rosa told the children a story.
The mirror had belonged to her sister Iris.
Iris had also lived with a wolf.
But the hunters killed that wolf and changed the story.
They made the wolf into a villain so that killing wolves would seem right.

Iris later died from illness.
Her heart had been broken long before.
That was why Rosa kept the mirror as a guardian of the house.

Several weeks later wolf tracks were found near the village.
The leader of the hunters ordered traps to be set.
The village became tense.
The rumor quickly reached the children.

Mia stopped leaving the house.
Every day she sat in front of the mirror.
She was scared.
She wanted to run away but did not know where to go.
The mirror gave no answer.
It only reflected her fear.

One day a low voice was heard outside the house.
Hunters had come to investigate.
Mia held Forest with shaking hands and hid him in the back room.

Footsteps moved through the house.
They came closer and then went away.
In the end nothing was found.

After the door closed Mia collapsed to the floor.
The mirror showed a girl crying in silence.

Mia gently touched the mirror.
She felt that it might have protected them.

Forest lay quietly beside her.
Nothing was over yet.
But Mia knew one thing.
Even in fear choosing to live together with someone you love is never wrong.

The mirror remained silent and continued to reflect the two of them.